Safety recommendation
HSIB recommends that the Office of the National Data Guardian supports local interpretation of the Caldicott Principles to give organisations and staff the confidence to display full patient names at the bedside to support correct patient identification for safer care.
Response:
The National Data Guardian accepts this recommendation and confirms that hospitals displaying a patient’s full name above their bed or on the door of their room so that they may be correctly identified in an emergency is supported by both Caldicott Principle 7 and the Health and Social Care (Safety and Quality) Act (2015).
Caldicott Principle 7:
The duty to share information for individual care is as important as the duty to protect patient confidentiality.
Health and social care professionals should have the confidence to share confidential information in the best interests of patients and service users within the framework set out by the Caldicott Principles. They should be supported by the policies of their employers, regulators, and professional bodies.
Links:
Response received on 21 April 2023.
Additional actions taken by ONDG
The Office of the National Data Guardian highlighting HSIB report and re-affirmed Principle 7 in their newsletter:
“A recent [HSIB] investigation found variation in what information is visible about patients around their beds and this may make it hard for staff to make decisions about care in urgent situations. The NDG advised HSIB that ‘displaying a patient’s full name above their bed or on the door of their room so that they may be correctly identified in an emergency, is consistent with Caldicott Principle 7.’ Other information about patients is dependent on local context, clinical situation, patient wishes, and whether it is necessary for information to be displayed.”